Where does “fall off” come from?

fall off (English) comes from English off, from Middle English of, from Old English of, from Old English æf, from Proto-Germanic *ab, from Proto-Indo-European apó.

fall off (English): To become detached or to drop from; To diminish...

Definitions

  1. To become detached or to drop from; To diminish...

Ancestry of “fall off”, step by step

fall off traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English off

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishoffIn a direction away from the speaker or object;...
2Middle Englishofof; off; until
3Old Englishofof, from, off, out of
4Old Englishæfof
5Proto-Germanic*ab—
6Proto-Indo-Europeanapó—

via English fall

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Englishfall"To be moved downwards."; "To move downwards.";...
2Middle Englishfall—
3Old EnglishfeallAlternative form of fiell
4Proto-Germanicfallą—
5Proto-Indo-European(s)pōl-to fall

Words derived from “fall off”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European apó →